A characteristic feature of inflamed lungs in bronchial asthma (BA) is airway remodeling. Due to limited information on this topic in the literature, we aimed to explore the possible role of polymorphisms in the promoter region of the macrophage elastase gene MMP12 82A>G (rs2276109) as a predisposing factor for BA in an ethnic Bulgarian population. Using restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of polymerase chain reaction-amplified fragments (PCR-RFLP), we performed genotype analysis of 58 patients and 119 control individuals. We found statistically significant differences in the distribution of genotypes (P = .008) and alleles (P = .004) between patients and nonaffected controls. In the dominant model, carriers of the G allele genotypes had 3.6-fold lower risk for BA, compared with those with the AA genotype, after adjustment for age and sex (odds ratio [OR], -0.277; 95% confidence interval [CI], .12-.65; P = .003). The results of our study suggest that the variant G allele of the MMP12 -82 A>G promoter polymorphism might be considered protective for development of BA in ethnic Bulgarian adults residing in central Bulgaria.